Jesus is The Sun of Righteousness
By David J. Stewart | February 2014 | Updated May 2017
Malachi 4:2, “But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.”
What a precious passage of Scripture! We all have clouds in our life, but Jesus is the “SUN OF RIGHTEOUSNESS” that always shines above the clouds. Wherever there are clouds, remember that the sun is always shining above them. My friend, you'll never see a breathtaking rainbow without the presence of rain combined with sunshine. It cannot be sunny all the time if you expect to see some colorful rainbows in your life. And notice something awesome this wonderful truth, that is, rainbows are reminders of God's PROMISE never to destroy the earth against by flood. Moreover, rainbows are tokens of God's honesty, that He keeps all His PROMISES, never breaking even one. No Sir, not one promise has ever been broken by God! Not one!!!
Unshakable faith comes from having our faith shaken. Soldiers are made by warfare. And mariners are made by storms at sea. The sun is never beautiful without the clouds. Christians are made by the burdens they carry, and clouds by which the sun can shine through. This world is one heartbreak after another. Oh, rejoice my friend in the burdens and problems of life, for without them we could not truly enjoy the blessings of God...
He who knows no battles knows no victories.
He who knows no bondage knows no deliverance.
He who knows no death can know no resurrection
He who knows no sin will never know forgiveness.
He who knows no Gethsemane can have no Calvary.
He who knows no darkness will never enjoy the dawn.
He who knows no sunset will never enjoy a sunrise.
He who knows no illness will never know a cure.
He who knows no problems will never know solutions.
He who knows no questions will never find any answers.
He who has no entrance will never enjoy an exit.
He who enjoys no clouds will never enjoy the sunshine, as he who knows the clouds.
The greatest Christians alive are those who have the most clouds. Why? Because Malachi 4:2 says that Jesus is the Sun of righteousness, “But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.”The sun with the clouds is so much more beautiful than the sun without the clouds. You'll never know the delivering hand of God until you've known the inside of a prison cell. A person who hasn't faced the grave of a loved one cannot understand the joy of comfort in the hour of bereavement. You'll never know the joy of recovery until you've first suffered the of pain and disease of the body. You can never truly enjoy the joy of fellowship until you've endured the pain of loneliness. A person who has never known failure cannot know the thrill of renewed success. A person cannot know a beautiful sunrise until they've first known the darkness of night. A person who has not known the bad hours can never joyously shout “hallelujah” during the good hours. He who knows no Red Sea knows no parting of the waters.
I DON'T know what tomorrow holds, but I DO know Who holds tomorrow! The only difference between yesterday's beautiful sunset and today's gloomy horizon are the clouds that obscure our view. Oh, praise God for the gloomy clouds that cause us to greatly appreciate the gorgeous sunsets. There's no unobscured sunset that can compare to the spectacular beauty of a sunset accompanied by the radiant spectrum of colors displayed by the sun shining amongst the clouds. Thank God! Thank God! Thank God for the burdens and hardships that enable God the Father to conform us into the image of Jesus.
Jesus will take your burdens and leave you with a song...
Jesus took my burdens I could no longer bear
Yes, Jesus took my burdens in answers to my prayer
My anxious fears subsided my spirit was made strong
For Jesus took my burden and left me with a songI'll trust Him for the future He knoweth all the way
For with His eye He'll guide me along life's pilgrim way
And I will tell in heaven while ages roll along
How Jesus took my burden and left me with a song
Living Above The Clouds By Faith
Rain falls downward. The rains of criticism and persecution fall downward in life. Ah, but Jesus sits on the right-hand of the heavenly Father, above the clouds. Amen! The Bible tells us to set our affection on things above the clouds, where the SUN OF CHRIST'S RIGHTEOUSNESS always shines. This is God's imputed righteousness attributed to every believer by faith.
How sad that most people's minds are set upon temporal things which cannot be taken into eternity. I don't know about you my friend, but I am going to set my affections on things above. Colossians 3:1-3, “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.” I am going to live above the clouds as much as possible, that is, thinking about OTHERS (their needs, burdens, sorrows, including spiritual needs). I am going to earn rewards in Heaven through labouring in prayers (Colossians 4:12). I am going to invest for an eternal lifestyle, laying up treasures for myself in Heaven as Jesus commanded in Matthew 6:19-20, by living each day for Jesus' sake and the gospel's...
Oh let my love with fervor burn, And from the world now let me turn;
Living for Thee, and Thee alone, Bringing Thee pleasure on Thy throne;
Only one life, “twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.
Only one life, yes only one, Now let me say, “Thy will be done”;
And when at last I’ll hear the call, I know I’ll say “’twas worth it all”;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last. ”
—Missionary C.T. Studd
“The mark
of the child of God is that he loves everybody!”
(a quote from Pastor Jack
Hyles' classic MP3 sermon, “
FORGIVENESS”
